Flood protection system

ABSTRACT

A dockside water shutoff system for a boat which includes a shutoff valve connected on an inlet end thereof to a fresh water supply. A conduit is connected to an outlet end of the shutoff valve for transferring water from the water supply to a plumbing system on a boat. A timer mechanism is operatively connected to the shutoff valve. The timer mechanism is configured to cause the shutoff valve to close after a predetermined period of time.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Serial No. 60/347,598, filed on Jan. 12, 2002, which isincorporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] The present invention relates generally to an apparatus forshutting off fluid flow in a conduit, and more particularly to animproved flow control device for stopping fluid flow in a conduit when apredetermined time interval is exceeded.

[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art

[0005] Most boats, especially smaller private recreational boats, have alimited amount of storage space. Furthermore, most boats have a limitedamount of storage space for fresh water. Typically, the size of a freshwater tank depends on the available space and the occupant's needs. Itis common for one person to consume one to ten gallons of water per dayfor drinking, washing, bathing, etc.

[0006] Therefore, due at least in part to this limited storage space,many boat owners, when tied up to a dock, connect to a fresh watersupply at the side of the dock. More specifically, boat owners connect ahose (typically a common rubber garden hose) from the boat's plumbingsystem to a water faucet on the dock. This connection provides acontinuous fresh water supply to the fresh water system on the boat.Pressurized water systems make life aboard a boat more comfortable byproviding fresh water on tap for dishwashing, showering and more.Typical components of a fresh water system on a boat include a freshwater tank, hoses, a strainer, filters, a pump, an accumulator tank, awater heater, a municipal water inlet connection, faucets and a showerhead.

[0007] Although the connection to the dockside fresh water supplyfulfills an important need for the boat owner, it is not withoutpotential drawbacks. That is, this configuration is susceptible to afailure of the water supply hose and/or any of the associated componentswhich could prove to be devastating to the boat and/or the occupants onthe boat. A leak in, or failure of, any of the components of the freshwater supply system that goes undetected could fill the boat with morewater than the bilge pumps and/or electrical supply system can handle,thereby ultimately causing the boat to flood and sink.

[0008] It is therefore apparent that a need exists for an apparatuswhich would prevent such a devastating result even in the event of afailure of the water supply hose or related components.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0009] The present invention provides apparatus and methods forpreventing a flood in a boat resulting from an undetected leak in thefresh water supply system.

[0010] In accordance with one aspect of the invention, a dockside watershutoff system for a boat is provided which includes a shutoff valveconnected on an inlet end thereof to a fresh water supply. A conduit isconnected to an outlet end of the shutoff valve for transferring waterfrom the water supply to a plumbing system on a boat. A timer mechanismis operatively connected to the shutoff valve. The timer mechanism isconfigured to cause the shutoff valve to close after a predeterminedperiod of time. Therefore, in the event of a leak, the water will onlyleak for the period of time permitted by the timer mechanism.

[0011] These and other features and advantages of the present inventionwill become more apparent from the accompanying drawings and thefollowing detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012]FIG. 1A is an illustration of the valve assembly connected to afresh water supply on the dock;

[0013]FIG. 1B is an illustration of a typical pressurized freshwatersystem on a boat;

[0014]FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram of the flood protection system inaccordance with the present invention;

[0015]FIG. 2B is a block diagram illustrating a processing device foruse in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

[0016]FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of the wiring associated with theflood protection system in accordance with the present invention;

[0017]FIG. 4 is an exploded view illustrating the components of theflood protection system in accordance with the present invention; and

[0018]FIG. 5 is a side view of the shutoff valve assembly with the coverof the enclosure removed.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0019] Referring now to the drawings in detail wherein like referencenumerals refer to like or similar elements, and initially to FIG. 1A,there is shown an illustration of a valve assembly 100 connected to afresh water supply 110 on a dock 120. Valve assembly 100 is preferablyinstalled on the dock 120 at the source of the fresh water supply 110 tomaximize amount of protection provided by the valve. That is, since thevalve is located at the source of the water supply, it will shut off thewater to each of the elements of the fresh water system on and off ofthe boat. A conduit 130 is connected to an outlet side of the valve 100and carries water to a boat.

[0020] A timer mechanism which is operatively connected to the valveassembly may be mounted in the vicinity of the valve 100 and ispreferably mounted in a wall within a boat. Preferably, the timermechanism is installed in the proximity of a sink or other fresh watersource (e.g., a water faucet or shower) on the boat. Therefore, it willbe convenient for the boater to energize the flood protection system asnecessary. The timer mechanism is preferably connected to a solenoidwhich causes the valve to open and close. The valve will remain open fora predetermined period of time such as, for example, 30 minutes. It iscontemplated that the predetermined period of time may be adjustable.

[0021]FIG. 1B is an illustration of a typical pressurized freshwatersystem on a boat. Typical components of a fresh water system on a boatinclude a fresh water tank 135, hoses 140, a strainer 145, filters 150,a pump 155, an accumulator tank 160, a water heater 165, a municipalwater inlet connection 170, faucets 175 and a shower head 180. As shown,the freshwater system on the boat includes several different componentsall connected by rigid and/or flexible conduit. Each of the connectionsare susceptible to leaking. Thus, the flood protection system inaccordance with the present invention advantageously provides theprotection required.

[0022] Referring now to FIG. 2A, a schematic diagram of the floodprotection system in accordance with the present invention is shown. Asshown, a two conductor cable 205 is connected at one end to the boat'spower supply 210 and at a second end to a timer 215. On the other end ofthe timer 215, another two conductor cable 220 is run to a bulkheadfitting 225 and ultimately to an electric solenoid that controls theshutoff valve 230. It is also contemplated that the shutoff valve may becontrolled by any other means known to one having ordinary skill in theart such as, for example, via pneumatic controls. It is furthercontemplated that the timer may be initiated by a momentary pushbuttonor by a wireless signal. The shutoff valve 230 is connected to adockside water supply 235 on an inlet side and to a conduit 240 on anoutlet side. Conduit 240 is preferably a garden hose which is clean sothat it will not contaminate the drinking water for the boat.Alternative materials may be utilized for conduit 240 such as, forexample, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) or copper. An outlet end of conduit240 is connected to a water inlet connection 245 associated with theboat.

[0023]FIG. 2B shows an example of a processing device 260 that may beused to implement the functions of the timer mechanism in accordancewith the present invention. The device 260 includes a processor 262 anda memory 264 which communicate over at least a portion of a set 265 ofone or more system buses. Also utilizing at least a portion of the set265 of system buses are a control device 266 and a network interfacedevice 268.

[0024] For example, the processor 262 may represent a microprocessor,central processing unit (CPU), digital signal processor (DSP), orapplication-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), as well as portions orcombinations of these and other processing devices. The memory 264 istypically an electronic memory, but may comprise or include other typesof storage devices, such as disk-based optical or magnetic memory. Thecontrol device 266 may be associated with the processor 262. The controldevice 266 may be further configured to transmit control signals to,e.g., the water shutoff valve.

[0025] The flood protection techniques described herein may beimplemented in whole or in part using software stored and executed usingthe respective memory and processor elements of the device 260. Forexample, the timer functions may be implemented at least in part usingone or more software programs stored in memory 264 and executed byprocessor 262. The particular manner in which such software programs maybe stored and executed in device elements such as memory 264 andprocessor 262 is well understood in the art and therefore not describedin detail herein. It should be noted that the device 260 may includeother elements not shown, or other types and arrangements of elementscapable of providing the functions described herein.

[0026]FIG. 3 illustrates a schematic diagram of the wiring associatedwith the flood protection system in accordance with the presentinvention. In general, the two conductor wire 320 is connected to theboat power supply 310, timer 315 and bulkhead fitting 325. In apreferred embodiment, the flood protection system utilizes theelectrical supply system 310 from the boat. More specifically, utilizingthe boat's 12 or 24 volt D.C. electrical system, a two conductor cable320 is run through a 1.5 amp fuse and into an electrical box which ishousing the timer mechanism 315. A second two conductor cable is runfrom the electrical box which is housing the timer mechanism 315, to anoutlet in the bulkhead of the boat. Within the electrical box, theconductors of the cables are connected to the timer from the electricalsupply as shown in an exploded view in FIG. 3.

[0027]FIG. 4 is an exploded view illustrating the components of theflood protection system in accordance with the present invention. In apreferred embodiment, the components illustrated in FIG. 4 include abrass adapter 405, an electric valve 410, a PVC coupling 415, a brassadapter 420, a marine gang box 425, a marine gang box cover 430, box435, a timer mechanism 440, a switch plate 445, 20 gage 2 conductor wire450 and a bulkhead fitting 455. Additional components of the presentinvention which are not shown include a junction box, a 24 volttransformer and a 30 psi regulator. It is contemplated that alternativesizes and materials may be substituted for any or all of the exemplaryparts.

[0028]FIG. 5 is a side view of the shutoff valve assembly in accordancewith the present invention with the cover of the enclosure removed topermit viewing of the valve assembly. As shown, shutoff valve 505 ispositioned within enclosure 510. An electric solenoid 515 is operativelyconnected to shutoff valve 505 to cause shutoff valve 505 to open andclose in response to a signal from a timer (not shown). A PVC coupling520 is connected to one end of shutoff valve 505. On either end of theenclosure is a brass adapter fitting 525 configured to connect to thedockside water supply (not shown) and the conduit (not shown).

[0029] The above-described embodiments of the invention are intended tobe illustrative only. It is to be understood that the invention is notlimited to those precise embodiments and that numerous alternativeembodiments may be devised by one having ordinary skill in the artwithout departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. Forexample, although the present invention was described with reference toits application to boats, the invention has additional applications suchas, for example, recreational vehicles.

What is claimed is:
 1. A flood protection system comprising: a valveconfigured to open and close the supply of water to a boat; and timermeans operatively connected to the valve to close the valve after apredetermined period of time.
 2. The flood protection system as recitedin claim 1 wherein the timer means is also operatively connected to thevalve to open the valve at a beginning of the predetermined period oftime.
 3. The flood protection system as recited in claim 1 furthercomprising switch means to energize the timer means.
 4. The floodprotection system as recited in claim 3 wherein the switch means is apushbutton switch.
 5. The flood protection system as recited in claim 1wherein the valve is connected to a source of water supply on a dock. 6.The flood protection system as recited in claim 1 further comprising aconduit connected at a first end to an outlet side of the valve andconnected at a second end to the boat.
 7. The flood protection system asrecited in claim 6 wherein the conduit is a rubber hose.
 8. The floodprotection system as recited in claim 1 further comprising an electricsolenoid operatively connected to the valve to open and close the valve.9. The flood protection system as recited in claim 1 wherein thepredetermined period of time is thirty minutes.
 10. A method ofpreventing a flood on a boat, the method comprising the steps ofconnecting a valve configured to open and close the supply of water to aboat to a source of water; and energizing timer means operativelyconnected to the valve to open the valve for a predetermined period oftime.
 11. The method as recited in claim 10 wherein the source of wateris on a dock.
 12. The method as recited in claim 10 wherein the timermeans is connected to a solenoid to open and close the valve.
 13. Themethod as recited in claim 10 further comprising the step of closing thevalve after the predetermined period of time.
 14. The method as recitedin claim 10 wherein the predetermined period of time is thirty minutes.